


Alone

by roeskva



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: Angst, Apocafic, Apocalypse, Character Death, Community: apocalypse_kree, Drama, Gen, Mild Gore, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-03
Updated: 2017-02-03
Packaged: 2018-09-21 19:30:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,572
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9563258
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/roeskva/pseuds/roeskva
Summary: Sam wakes up in the infirmary with no memory of what has happened. She finds the corridors and rooms of the base empty, and she fears no one else is left alive at the SGC. She will soon learn something that makes her wish that had been the case.WARNINGS: Lots of major and minor character deaths. Violence. Some amount of gore. Description of less-than pleasant human-to-alien transformations.





	1. Awakening

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Apocalypse Kree! 2016 on Livejournal.
> 
> PROMPT: Sam. She wakes up in sickbay after some injury that left her unconscious for a couple days. She finds the SGC is completely empty, with no signs of fighting.
> 
> NOTES: Takes place early season 2, shortly after "In the Line of Duty" - maybe just under a week after. In this AU, Sam has been unconscious after the attack by the ashrak.

Sam slowly woke up and opened her eyes. She noticed she was somewhere with low light, and steady, soothing sounds. The _infirmary_ , she realized. She tried to remember what had happened, why she was there. and she turned her head to look around. She groaned softly as a wave of dizziness washed over her, and her head began to hurt.

With the pain came a vague memory. Someone had tried to kill her with an energy weapon of some kind. After several minutes of trying, she had to accept that she did not remember anything further, but since she was alive he must have failed. However, it also explained why she was here, in the infirmary.

She tried to speak, to call out for someone to come and give her some information, but it just came out as a croak. She tried to clear her voice and looked to the table beside her, but there was no water for her to wet her dry mouth with.

Well, even if it was the middle of the night, someone would be on duty and would surely stop by to check on her soon. She could wait.

* * *

About an hour or so had passed when Sam decided that enough was enough. Someone should at least have peeked their head through the door and checked on her by now.

She slowly, carefully sat up. Her headache increased, and the room spun, but she closed her eyes and breathed deeply. When she was feeling a little better, she freed herself from the various tubes, IV lines, and sensors.

Sliding her legs over the side of the bed, she stood - and almost fell. She grasped for support, pulling a number of instruments and a lamp to the floor with a lot of noise as a result.

She frowned as she straightened and looked around in the half-dark room. Surely _someone_ must have heard that, but no one came. Trailing her hand against the side of the bed, and then the wall for support, she made it to the door and opened it.

The room beyond was empty. Clearing her voice, she croaked, "Hello?"

There was no answer. Puzzled, and by now more than a little worried, Sam went to the nearest sink and filled a plastic cup, then took a big gulp. Remembering that she ought to drink slowly, she restrained herself and sipped the water while padding around the infirmary, looking for someone, _anyone_.

Her next destination was Janet's office. She walked on uncertain legs to the room, her heart beating fast, worried what she might find.

The office was as empty as the rest of the infirmary. Sam quickly checked the papers on the table, and then the computer which was on, not even having been locked. She found no indication of what might have happened. It was both curious and unsettling.

After finding the place completely abandoned, she went to the intercom. Her finger was inches from the activation button when she pulled it back like she had been burnt. If the SGC had been taken over by someone, the _last_ she wanted was to tell them she was free!

Her headache was bothering her, and she found a couple of painkillers and washed them down with some more water. She looked down herself, at the hospital gown she was wearing, and decided she needed something else before she took on whatever it was that was wrong at the SGC.

She grabbed some clean scrubs and a pair of non-slip socks from a closet and disappeared into the bathroom to freshen up a little.

After a quick bath, she was feeling better - physically, at least. She was extremely worried about her friends and the rest of the personnel on the base, perhaps even the planet, depending on what had happened. Worrying about a possible foothold situation, she opened the door out into the corridor as silently as possible.

Seeing no one, she slipped out from the infirmary and walked along the corridor to the elevator. This was beyond creepy. The corridors were dark, with only the emergency lights on - and those, weirdly, seemed to be on an even dimmer setting than normal.

As she turned the corner, she saw something on the floor. An access card. She bent down to pick it up, and almost fell as her headache and dizziness grew worse. She cursed the inefficiency of the painkillers she had taken earlier, and took several deep breaths, steadying herself.

The card belonged to Teal'c, which was not exactly reassuring. She could not imagine him dropping it, but there was no blood visible anywhere so that was something, she thought.

Pocketing the card, she continued to the elevator, stopping herself just before she pressed the button to call the elevator. She stood for a few moments, listening intently, but heard nothing. The thought that she was the only one left on the base crossed her mind, and the thought scared and depressed her.

Then she had the even more scary thought that she was _not_ the only living thing on the base - merely the only _human_.

Suddenly, she imagined hearing something and froze. What if invisible aliens were creeping around, just waiting to attack her? She quickly pushed the thought aside, assuring herself it was ridiculous.

She pushed the button and shortly after the elevator doors opened before her. The light in there was as dimly red as in the rest of the place, but she got on and pushed the button to level 19 where the secondary base armoury were. Whatever had happened, if someone hostile was on the base, she had better make sure she was ready for them.

* * *

She had armed herself and also taken a trip to her quarters for some BDUs instead of the scrubs.

After that, she had searched floors 15 to 21. They had all been empty. Giving in to her rumbling stomach, she was currently on level 22, in the mess hall.

Sam looked at the display cases and buffet tables. Little food remained, and what was there was clearly not prepared recently. She estimated it had been at least a whole day, maybe more. She looked around at the tables with mostly-empty trays and plates, and shook her head - carefully. Whatever it was that had happened had done so suddenly and seemingly without any fights.

She went to the kitchen and found something to eat in a refrigerator. Munching on a sandwich she sat down at a table, placing a glass of milk in front of her. She needed to think and plan.

Her head was still feeling as if it was filled with cotton, but the headache had diminished as had the dizziness. She tried to remember some more of what had happened to her - perhaps it was related to what had happened to the base and the people on it. Another question was, why had she been spared? Because she was unconscious? Possibly. _Likely_.

She remembered going to a planet. _Nasya_. There had been an attack. There had been death gliders. SG-1 had helped to evacuate the population through the Stargate. She recalled that she had gone to help a wounded man, and then _something_ had happened. That much she remembered.

She frowned, rubbing her neck abstractedly. Suddenly she had a memory flash. She had become a _host_! She jumped back, tripping over her chair with a large crash. She froze in the spot and listened for a long time, but there were no other sounds. No one had heard her.

Taking a deep breath she raised up the chair and sat down on it again, picking up her sandwich. Yes, she had become a host, but she clearly was not one any longer. She had full control of her body.

She had vague memories of her body walking around without her control, doing things without her control. The Goa'uld talking to her about _something_. Then she - no the _Goa'uld_ \- had been discovered and thrown into a holding cell. That was where she had been attacked. By _another_ Goa'uld. She gasped as she remembered the pain, then nothing. Nothing until she woke up in the infirmary.

Had that other Goa'uld killed the Goa'uld in her? Possibly, but why? She shook her head and ate the rest of the sandwich, then washed it down with the milk. There was no reason to think about it any further right now. What was important now was that other Goa'uld, and whether or not it was responsible for the current mess they were in.

She wiped perspiration from her forehead, noting that it was warmer than usual. Weird, but not something she would worry about now, because she had gotten an idea.

Much of the base was covered by surveillance cameras. She should be able to tell what had happened by looking through the recordings. The monitoring station on level 16 would be her next destination.


	2. Alone - or not

She had already looked through several of the surveillance videos, seeing nothing strange, when she got to a recording that had been made just over 30 hours earlier, in the infirmary.

She watched the members of SG-2 going through a post-mission check-up. That was hardly surprising, giving that she had also watched a video of them returning, carrying some sort of alien artifact.

Everything looked normal with the team, except that one of them - Major Louis Ferretti - had apparently been stung by something. It was difficult to tell from the recording, but the injury appeared fairly deep and consisted of three holes located in a circle, with a few centimeters in between. The wound was on Ferretti's back, just under the left shoulder. It looked ugly and painful, and Sam grimaced as she watched Janet examine it.

Ferretti appeared none the worse for wear, and Janet dismissed him after putting some sort of disinfectant on the wound, before bandaging it. Sam could almost hear her say that he should return if he had any problems. He grinned and left, seemingly all right. However, she got an ominous feeling about it all, given what had happened on the base later.

The next hint she got about what had transpired was from a video recorded many hours later. Groups of people walked around, as if dazed. Then Ferretti appeared in the picture, carrying something that let out purple smoke or mist. He clearly said something to the others and they immediately started following him, walking very slowly, as if drugged.

Sam felt her hair stand up on the back of her neck just watching it. What _was_ that purple smoke, and why did Ferretti release it? Did it have anything to do with that injury he had gotten on the back? Had something been injected into him? Was it controlling him?

She remembered finding Teal*c's access card in the corridor outside the infirmary, and quickly found the surveillance videos of that area and started to watch.

When she got to the recordings from approximately 14 hours ago, it showed a group of the dazed people led by Colonel O'Neill. She stared in disbelief as he gave orders to capture Teal'c, who was clearly not affected by whatever it was that was affecting everyone else. He fought bravely, but went down when he was shot by a zat'nik'tel - one of the weapons they had brought back from the mission to Apophis's ships.

Sam slowly shook her head in horror as she watched while an unconscious Teal'c was carried along by the silent mob.

She switched to the recordings from the next camera, and then the next, following them as they went to the elevator, some of them going down with Teal'c, while O'Neill and the rest continued on to _somewhere_.

There was no surveillance in the elevator, and she did not know what floor they had gone to. She found recorded feeds of cameras in the corridor just outside the elevator on several floors, and methodically looked through them for around that period of time.

She was about to give up when she found the group again, They were on level 23. Teal'c had woken up again and was fighting back, when a horrible creature suddenly appeared from around the corner.

It was about the height of a man, but aside from a roughly humanoid shape - and four limbs and a head, it did not have much resemblance to a human. The arms and legs were jointed, like those on ants, with six segments on each, and ending in something that looked like a three-part hook. The creature did walk upright, but sloping somewhat.

The slender body was pastry white, but completely covered by long black hairs, and the head began directly on the shoulders, with no neck in between. The creature had eight small flourescent green eyes, antennae, and a mouth with large mandibles. It looked like something straight out of a nightmare.

Sam gasped out loud when the lifeform stepped up to Teal'c and a long tentacle shot out from the middle of the creature's face. A three-pronged stinger was located at the tip, and it hovered just before Teal'c for several moments, while her teammate screamed in clear horror, before the stinger sank into the flesh on the right side of his chest.

Teal'c did not stop fighting, and it took the combined forces of the people carrying him to hold him down. While they did so, the creature leaned down over him, opening its mandibles and allowing some sort of slimy fluid to run into Teal'c's mouth. The Jaffa stopped fighting almost immediately and fell unconscious.

For several minutes after watching that, she just sat there, staring at the screen without seeing the now empty corridor. What _was_ that horrible creature and how had it come onto the base?

She shook herself. Something had to be done, and fast. The base appeared to be empty, though she had not searched all of it. Did that mean the creature had taken everyone offworld? Or - up on the surface?

She needed to make sure no one was still on the base, but first she had to contact her superiors and warn them. She frowned. From what she could tell, it had been many hours, possibly as much as 30 hours since this had begun. There was no way the base could have been out of communication for that long without anyone becoming suspicious.

She moved to find the feed from Hammond's office, just to see if the place was clear before she went there. She was about to press the button to switch to the relevant feed, when an intense wave of pain emanating from the back of her head and neck caused her to double over and gasp out loud. Images appeared before her, followed by sensations. The Goa'uld - the ashrak - had been killing her, using a hara'kesh. Heat and pain filled her senses and for several moments that was all she could feel.

Then slowly, the intense pain began to diminish. She took several deep breaths and pulled herself up from the ground, where she had somehow ended up. Sitting down on the nearest chair, she leaned back and closed her eyes for a little while, allowing both pain and the memory of the event to dissipate.

Feeling better, she hit the button to change to the feed from Hammond's office. Her head still felt heavy and her mind foggy, and she forced herself to focus on the image. What she saw almost immediately cleared her head and made her forget the pain.

General Hammond sat behind his desk, talking into the phone, looking as if nothing was amiss. After a few moments, he calmly put down the phone, and leaned back in the chair, staring into nothingness.

However, as odd as this was, Sam's attention was not on the General, but rather on the other being in the room with him. Across from the table sat another one of those creatures, calmly reclining in a chair.

Sam let out a groan. It was obvious that no one would be coming to their assistance any time soon. She checked out the feed from the gateroom, and noted several guards. No doubt under the influence of the alien creatures.

She clicked through several more feeds, seeing no one in any of the corridors - except at the top floor, where more guards were stationed. From the way they were moving, slowly, she had the uncomfortable feeling they were under alien influence too. She wondered if NORAD was compromised too, and if so, if anyone outside the mountain was. Probably not yet, she reasoned, but they soon would be, if nothing was done.

Her gaze caught movement on another screen, this one showing a corridor on level 23. A familiar looking man came out from a room, which Sam recognized as the location of the secondary power grids for the entire base. The man was Colonel Jack O'Neill, her Commanding officer.

He moved slowly, strangely, and then stopped. He leaned against the wall, his face contracting weirdly. Then something happened which Sam would never have believed - and which she would never be able to forget seeing.

She stared in shock as O'Neill - or what looked like him at any rate - grabbed the top of his head and _pulled_ , hard, until his skin tore, revealing something shiny, wet and pale-white, from the top of which antennae slowly unfurled.

The creature continued freeing itself from skin and clothes alike in sickening slow-motion. Finally, it stepped free of the remnants of the human it had been, and stood there, stretching and flexing its body.

Sam did not know what to do or how to react. She probably had just watched her teammate transform into a terrifying alien being. Colonel O'Neill was _dead_. General Hammond was controlled by the aliens and had made sure no one would come to their aid - and as far as Sam knew, she was the only one on the base who was not either one of the aliens or under their control.

She gasped out loud as another sharp pain in the back of her head pulled her attention away from anything else. Moments later, she felt a presence. "Crap..." Her eyes _flashed_ and control of her body was transferred to someone else.

*What is going on? Where are we?* a voice spoke in her mind.

The parasite. It was not dead. How could it still be alive? *Give me back control!*

There was confusion from the parasite, but then control was returned to Sam. *I apologize.*

Sam was surprised, but not about to argue. "Good... and don't just grab control in the future!"

*Of course not!* the parasite sounded offended, then puzzled. *You are clearly not Rosha. Who are you - and why am I in you?*

Sam was speechless - and more than a little sceptical. "You don't _know_? What do you _think_? You bored into my brain! Just like that!"

*I took you against your will!?* The parasite sounded aghast. *Please tell me that is not so!*

Sam rolled her eyes, starting to believe the symbiote really did not know. "Yes, you did. What did you _think_? That I invited you in?"

*I took an unwilling host!* it sounded equal parts shocked and dismayed. *I apologize. I do not know what could have made me do that, but I will leave you as soon as possible. Please, may I share your memories of the most recent events, so I can better understand?*

"Don't pretend you can't read my mind! Oh, and I'm Captain Samantha Carter, by the way, if you care to know my name."

*I _can_ read your mind, but I would never do so against your will, unless the situation was grave. One more thing. Please do not speak out loud. I can hear you if you think to me.*

Sam's gaze suddenly fell on the screen where the creature that had emerged from O'Neill was now moving out of the image, in the direction of the elevator. "Shit! The situation _is_ grave! Very much so!" She realised there was a very good reason not to speak out loud, particularly now. *So I guess, go ahead and read my memories, as much as I hate the thought of that.*

Sam had the uncomfortable sensation of someone opening all the mental boxes of her mind and peeking into them, but pushed the thought aside. As crazy as it sounded, she had more important things to think about, and if the Goa'uld in her head was not going to suppress her - for whatever reason - she would get back to trying to save the base and her friends, and possibly her world, from even more terrifying alien creatures.

*I am not a Goa'uld,* Jolinar insisted, pulling Sam out of her thoughts.

She snorted. *Of course not! You just happens to be a snake-like parasite that burrows into people's heads and steals their body!*

*I am _biologically_ the same as the Goa'uld, yes, but _not_ philosophically.*

Sam shook her head. *I don't know if you think I believe that or if you're crazy, but if you're not going to suppress me I have more important things to do.*

*Wait! This place is under attack! Why did you not notify me at once?*

Letting out a groan, Sam got up from the chair and picked up the MP5 she had fetched from the armoury earlier. *Perhaps the fact that a _parasite_ has made my brain his home took my attention?*

* _Her_. And please, would you refrain from calling me a parasite?*

*You're _female_?* Sam shook her head. *Whatever, I don't care. Can you tell me anything useful? Like what these creatures that are killing my friends are?*

*I am sorry, but my people have no knowledge of them. At least none that I can remember,* Jolinar added.

Sam sighed, walking towards the door. *Any useful ideas at all?*

*Keep away from those creatures.*

'Brilliant!* Sam snorted. *I am going to go to level 23 and see what is going on.*

*Stop! _Why_?*

*If you _must_ know, I remember noticing it being hotter on level 22, and I saw that creature emerge from the Colonel on level 23. I also saw them take Teal'c there, so something is going on down there.*

*I agree, but I believe it would be highly dangerous.*

*Goa'uld are cowards,* Sam observed, leaving the room. No one was in the corridor, and she set out in the direction of the elevator.

Jolinar made a mental, frustrated sigh. *If I truly took you as host against your will, I can understand your hostility. If you will not listen to me otherwise, then at least listen to this; find another weapon. I know from your memories that you have a few zat'nik'tels. They would be a better choice.*

*A bit less noisy, stun-capable, and it would be possible to disintegrate someone I don't want found. Point taken. I will see if I can get hold of one.*


	3. Exploring

The aliens had taken most of the zat'nik'tels that had been brought back from the mission to Apophis's ship, but there was one left which Sam took. After urging by Jolinar, she took the hara'kesh too, which had come from the ashrak. Sam and Jolinar both took this as indication the ashrak was dead - one less problem to worry about.

*Be _careful_! They almost saw us!* Jolinar warned, for the third or fourth time.

*If you think I'm so careless, why don't you take control from me? _Can't_ you?* Sam asked, irritated. She was also voicing something that had started to puzzle her.

*Did you hear nothing of what I said? I am not Goa'uld, I am _Tok'ra_! I do not take control against my host's will - unless we are in grave danger. Which we soon _will_ be if you continue like this!*

*Tok'ra. That is supposed to _mean_ anything to me?* Sam grumbled. She peeked her head out into the corridor. Seeing no one, she hurriedly ran to the door that lead to the secondary power grids and emergency engineering. * _Damn_ , it's hot here!*

*Now is not the time, but I will show you my memories later. Then you will understand. For now I suggest, ah, _ceasefire_? Just until the current situation has been resolved.*

Sam hesitated, then took a deep breath. *Yes. I agree.* She closed her eyes for a moment, then grabbed the handle of the door at the same time she held her zat'nik'tel at the ready. *Here goes nothing!*

She stopped just inside the door, staring into the dimness. It was very hot and humid, and the room was almost dark, except for a dull red light. She could vaguely make out some sort of tangled, web-like material along all the walls, and hanging from the roof.

*It looks like some sort of organic material,* Jolinar offered.

*Yes, it looks that way...* Sam carefully edged closer to the strange growths on the wall. *It's _everywhere_! How could it have grown so quickly? Unless I've been unconscious for weeks or months!*

*I have examined your body and I do not believe you have been unconscious for more than perhaps a few days. Less than a week, at least.*

'Then this makes no sense!* Sam carefully pushed the slimy-looking tentacles - or whatever it was - with her zat'nik'tel. Then, she almost jumped as she heard a moan and saw movement _in_ the wall, some three feet to her left.

"Helllp me..."

"Oh, my god!" Sam realized in horror that it was a human being, embedded into the organic wall. She forced herself to grab hold of the tangled mass of organic tubes and tentacles and pull them aside somewhat. It was slippery to the touch. "Siler? Oh, _no_!" She began pulling and tearing at the alien growth, finally managing to free the man.

He fell out on the floor, unable to stand on his own. Sam helped him to sit up against a part of the wall that had not been covered by the alien organic material.

She held her hand against his forehead. "You've got a high fever. Let's get you to the infirmary and see if we can find something for it. You need water, at the very least." She sighed. "I'm afraid there aren't any of the doctors or nurses there."

Siler coughed. "No... they're probably all in _here_."

"What?" Sam frowned. "What do you mean 'all in here'? In this _room_?" She peered into the darkness.

"Yes. And the adjacent rooms. We've all been... stung. Captain Carter, we're... _transforming_. I've seen three change already. I can feel it... _inside_. I am changing. It will... _happen_."

"No! I refuse to believe that! I _will_ find a way to save you, _all_ of you!" Sam insisted.

A roar was heard from further inside the room, followed by a sticky, ripping sound. Someone was escaping the organic wall on their own.

"Who is there?" Sam shouted, raising her gun and aiming it at the noise.

The only answer she got was a moan, followed by a roar. A man walked towards her, and she recognized him as a young Lieutenant that had been assigned to one of the SG teams a couple weeks ago.

"Lieutenant Jenkins, right? Are you okay?" She looked worriedly at the man as he walked slowly, stumbling, towards her.

He stopped maybe 5 feet from her and roared, then grabbed hold of the top of his head with both hands.

*I think we should get out of here. _Quickly_!* Jolinar suggested.

*He's seen us. If he turns into one of the alien creatures, then we'll have to kill him.* Sam swallowed hard and winced as the Lieutenant ripped away the skin and outer layers to reveal the alien inside. * _God_! That's not a sight I'll _ever_ get used to!*

"Kill him, Captain!" Siler screamed. "I've seen it before! _Kill_ it!"

She took several steps back while the creature before her tore off the rest of the human skin, as if it was offending it, roaring at Sam.

She fired at it with her zat'nik'tel, and the blue energy played harmlessly over it's body, as if on a layer outside it. A natural _forceshield_. It opened its mouth and appeared to laugh, the mandibles working in a way that seemed a mockery of that sentiment.

"Your... _race_... will fall. We will... _take_ your... _world_!" it growled.

Sam fired again, but the creature barely reacted. "What the..." She dropped the zat'nik'tel and grabbed the MP5 that was hanging in its strap around her neck and shoulder. The alien was coming closer, and she fired at it point-blank, not even caring to aim.

The tentacle she had seen in action on the recordings suddenly shot out from the middle of the creature's face and went for her, lightning fast.

It was not as fast as Jolinar, though, who grabbed control and threw herself at the side, narrowly avoiding the stinger. She had continued firing as she did so, the shots flying in all directions. Now she aimed the weapon at the aggressive being and emptied the clip into it. It growled, then fell to its knees, then to the ground where it lay, growling in a low voice. Greenish-black blood oozed from several wounds on its torso, and the stinger-tentacle flopped harmlessly.

Jolinar looked at it, heart pumping and adrenaline coursing through her veins. She took a step away from it.

*Were we stung?* Sam asked, nervously.

*No, we were not.* Jolinar looked at the MP5 in her hands. *Curious weapon. It is most fortunate that it did not malfunction before it did. At least the creature is damaged enough that it is not attacking us.*

*It didn't malfunction, it just ran out of bullets. Give me control so I can rearm it.*

Jolinar immediately rescinded control. *That is not very useful. Our weapons are vastly better.*

*Sure, but the zat didn't work, right?* Sam told her sarcastically as she put a new clip in her MP5 and immediately fired several more times at the wounded creature.

*Zat?*

"Is it dead?" Siler asked.

Sam had completely forgotten about him, but now she nodded at him. "Yes, I think so." She gingerly kicked at the motionless alien. "It's dead."

"You're still host to the Goa'uld," Siler observed tiredly.

She hesitated. "Yes. Right now we have... a working relationship."

Siler snorted. "I guess it doesn't matter. These creatures are probably..." He coughed. "As much enemies of the Goa'uld as we are."

*Try shooting the being with the zat'nik'tel.*

*It's already dead! Besides, the zat did nothing before!*

*Are you _unable_ to say a whole word? _Zat'nik'tel_! And if at all possible, we do not want anyone to know we are here, so it would be better if the creature could be disintegrated.*

*Whatever.* Sam picked up the zat'nik'tel and rapidly fired at the alien being three times. This time there was no apparent layer around the creature, protecting it, and with the third shot the creature disappeared. "Wow!"

A groan from Siler made her turn back to him. "Sergeant?"

"I can feel... how I am changing. Captain Carter, you must kill me." He looked at her earnestly.

"No! We'll find some way to cure this." She looked around at the room, shuddering at the thought of her friends and coworkers being trapped along the walls, entangled in the slimy organic web. "There has to be something we can do." She helped Siler to stand. "Come, let's get you to the infirmary so we can do some tests."

* * *

Before leaving level 23, Sam had taken a peek into a few of the rooms beside the one she had found Siler in, and all the ones that had to do with the emergency power and secondary power grids were filled with the alien organic material - and presumably people, trapped in the walls. She had not checked, but she had heard muffled groans from inside.

They had made it to the infirmary without being discovered, but only just.

Now Siler was lying on one of the examination tables and Sam had looked at the area on his back where he had been stung. The wound looked like the one she had seen on Ferretti on the screen, and that was more than a little disconcerting, considering what she knew had happened to _him_.

She had taken some samples from the wound itself, and from Siler's blood. Both had contained massive amounts of some kind of tiny parasite or perhaps large vira. From what she and Jolinar could tell, they were rewriting Siler's DNA and rebuilding his body, transforming him into one of the alien creatures.

An injection of immune globuline together with a drug Sam had mixed from Jolinar's instructions had strengthened him temporarily, but it was not long before he was as weak as before.

*Do you have any suggestions?* Sam asked, desperate.

*I am not a biochemist, but the Tok'ra have many who are skilled in this area. We should take the samples, and perhaps one of the dead creatures with us and leave the base.*

*Leave the _base_? What about the people here! They don't have very long! Besides, I doubt we'll be able to escape. Remember the guards?*

*Which for now are merely drugged humans. Soon all or most will be those creatures, and we do not have the firepower to take more than a few of those down. I understand your reluctance to abandon your friends and comrades, but if we do not, your whole world could fall to these - then the whole Galaxy. They _must_ be stopped!*

Sam was silent for several moments. *Yes, they must be stopped, but I am not leaving yet. I am going to spend a little longer trying to find a cure - or at least a way of slowing it down. If you don't agree, you will have to _take_ control and force me away!*

*You know I will not do that,* Jolinar grumbled.

Sam rose quickly from where she had been studying the samples. Doing so, she suddenly realized she had not felt either pain or dizziness or a long time. She wondered if the _Tok'ra_ had anything to do with that.

"Captain, you have to kill me!" Siler implored her. "I can hear them in my head now! The aliens. I don't know how much longer I can hold back, how much longer I'll be _me_!"

Sam walked over to him and looked at him with a pained expression. "Please let me try one more thing. I have an idea." Her gaze went to the monitor showing his readings, which were clearly far from normal. She sighed inaudibly and went to find some strong antiviral drugs, and some anti-parasitical as well.


	4. Overwhelmed

"All right, let's see if this has any effect," Sam said, after hooking up Siler to intravenous lines with the drugs.

He just shook his head, which made Sam more worried than anything. He was not usually this defeatist, but she could not exactly blame him. The prospect of being transformed into one of those creatures was terrifying. She shuddered and went back to look at the samples she had taken.

It was less than 15 minutes later when she was interrupted by the sound of weapon's fire and a scream, followed by a crash.

"Siler!" she shouted and ran for the other room, holding her zat'nik'tel ready, and cursing her carelessness in leaving the MP5 in the other room.

The sight that met them was heart wrenching. Siler was lying on the floor, clearly dead from multiple gunshots. He had shot himself, not wanting to risk the transformation.

Sam fell to her knees beside him. "I'm sorry! I should have listened to you." She shook her head. "You shouldn't have had to do this yourself."

*I am sorry about your colleague,* Jolinar offered, meaning it.

*Hm.* Sam looked sadly at the dead Siler.

*Samantha, we need to get away from this base.*

*Do you have to be so cold? And stop calling me 'Samantha'. Call me 'Sam', if you _have_ to call me something.*

*I am not cold, but there need to be one person with a cool head in this body. _Sam_.*

Sam snorted and picked up her MP5. *I need more ammo - and more intel.* She wiped her forehead. *It's getting hot on this level too.*

*Yes. No doubt the intruders are increasing the temperature in order to get a better environment for their developing brothers and sisters.*

* * *

Sam had grabbed an assault shotgun in addition to her MP5, placing it in a holster on her back. She filled her pockets with ammunition and a few grenades, and tied a couple extra knives to her legs, should she need them. She had also found a small backpack that worked with the shotgun scabbard, and which she put some additional ammunition in, together with several blocks of C-4 and detonators. The zat'nik'tel she stuffed into a gun holster which it barely fit in, but it worked.

She felt sweat trickle down her back. The temperature was pretty high and so was the humidity, even here, several floors above the alien nest. She quickly divested herself of her jacket, before putting the backpack and holster on again and picking up the weapons.

She was ready.

Next point on her list was the monitoring station on level 16. Fortunately, all the aliens and brainwashed guards were on the lower levels - or the very top one - so she met no one.

* * *

*We'll never get past them on our own,* Sam concluded, watching the many guards - now also including two of the alien creatures - that were located in all the corridors on levels 27 and 28, as well as the gateroom.

*You have a Jaffa on your team, correct?*

*Yes?*

*He may be immune - or at least more resistant to the alien virus.*

*Well, he is. At least to the weird gas they used to control people with to begin with. He's still captured, though, and I saw him being stung.*

*On the monitor, yes.*

*Several hours ago, so I don't know how he is.*

*I believe it is worth finding him. If he is alive, he may be able to assist us. The same is possibly the case for some of the humans, if they are recently stung, or not yet stung.*

*Maybe we could give them something strengthening?* Sam suggested. "The immune globulin combined with that strengthening drug of yours worked for a little while. It may work longer if given earlier - or in combination with something else.*

*Possibly. I need to see what kind of drugs you have.*

They looked at the feed from the infirmary. No one was there or nearby.

*All right. Let's get going.*

* * *

*Okay, I've got the samples we took, and the drugs we hope will help people.* Sam sighed, shouldering her backpack again. *Let's do this.*

Since they knew from the surveillance camera that there were many more aliens and alien-controlled guards about now, Sam|Jolinar worried about being heard if they used the elevator, and so they used the stairs to walk down two floors, to level 23.

* _Damn_ , it's hot!* Sam moaned softly and fanned herself with her hand.

*I estimate it is around 110 Fahrenheit - unless I misunderstood how that strange temperature scale of yours work,* Jolinar informed her. *It would not be as bad if the humidity were not so high.*

Sam grumbled and pushed the door open a crack. She did not hear anyone nearby, so she peeked her head inside. There was no one in that part of the corridor at least. Relieved, she stepped through the door and closed it as silently as possible, before sneaking on ahead.

She froze in place when she heard a scraping sound, and stood for several moments, not even daring to breathe. Another scraping sound was heard, followed by a roar and then the sticky, ripping noise she had heard when the young Lieutenant transformed and ripped off his human skin. She shuddered and pressed herself against the wall, hoping the creature would not turn the corner and see her.

After almost five minutes, the terrible noises stopped and slow, dragging steps could be heard moving away from them. Finally a door was opened and then closed again, and then all was quiet.

Sam let out a sigh of relief and continued on towards the room where they had found Siler, taking care not to look at the discarded human skin lying in a corner.


	5. Fighting Back

*Teal'c doesn't seem to be in here,* Sam observed, both frustrated and sad. *But a _lot_ of other people are. I've counted 32, just in this room!*

*Yes. I _am_ sorry, Saman... _Sam_.* Jolinar 'hugged' her host.

*What did you just do?*

*I gave you a mental 'embrace'.*

*Ah. I... I _see_.* Sam was silent for several moments. *It was... _nice_.*

*You are welcome.*

*Um.* Sam pushed the confusion she suddenly felt about the symbiote aside. *They're all unconscious. I fear it means they're well into the transformation, but I wish I knew if it would help to inject them. If we could still save them, somehow.*

*It may merely mean they have been given something that keeps them calm while the transformation happens. Perhaps it is a side-effect of the organic webbing in here. I sense some sort of relaxing pheromone that is slowly being released.*

*I see. Well, we had better get out of here and to the next room before they wake up and start transforming or calling for the creatures. Siler said he could hear them in his mind.*

*Yes, I remember. They may communicate telepathically. If that is the case, we cannot allow one of them to see us and escape. I wonder why the one we killed did not call for help, but perhaps it was not able to yet.*

*Possible. It wasn't, ah, completely out of the human skin yet.* Sam made a face as she left the dimness of the room and stepped out into the somewhat brighter corridor.

No one was there, so she slipped into the room next door unseen. This was part of the emergency engineering of the base, and was just as dim, hot, and humid as the other room.

As well, it was full of unconscious people entangled in the walls. People that were most likely all transforming into aliens.

She pushed the depressing thought aside and focused on the task of finding Teal'c.

After taking only a few steps into the room, Jolinar spoke to her, *Teal'c is about 40 feet away, to your right.*

*What? How can you know that?* Sam wondered.

*Naquadah. It resonates with itself, meaning you can sense the energy signature of another host - or Jaffa. I will teach you later.*

A roar brought them out of their discussion. Right before them stood one of the creatures, fully transformed and free of all remnants of human skin.

"Crap!" Sam exclaimed, and fired the shotgun directly at the alien. When it did not stop, she continued firing, pumping ten rounds into it.

It made a hoarse sound and stumbled to the ground, seemingly dead.

Sam took a deep breath and looked at her USAS-12 assault shotgun, before she poked at the fallen alien with her foot. She considered emptying the rest of the drum into it.

*Zat'nik'tel?* Jolinar suggested.

*No, we want the corpse to take with us. For study,* Sam insisted. *As long as we are certain it's dead.*

*Fire a couple shots into it's head, then. I am not carrying something like that around if it suddenly wakes up and infects me with something - even if it is something I can cure.*

*Agreed.* Sam fired several more shots into the brain of the creature - assuming the brain was in the head. *We better hurry. No way to know if that thing managed to send a warning to its fellows.*

She went to where Jolinar said Teal'c was - and as she was walking closer, she _did_ sense something. A kind of tingling or humming in her blood.

She kneeled beside her teammate. "Teal'c?" She gently touched his shoulder.

When there was no reaction, she shook him a little harder. He instantly woke up and grabbed her arm.

"I will never let you take me over, you vile creature!"

Sam winced from the pain in her arm and hand. "Hi, Teal'c. Good to hear... and _feel_ that you're still alive."

He immediately let go. "I apologize, Captain Carter. I believed it to be one of the creatures."

"No problem." She massaged her arm. "I understand." She frowned and tried to see how he looked in the darkness. "How are you?" She started tearing at the alien tendrils that were keeping him captive.

"I was infected with something virulent. My symbiote has been trying to fight it, but I fear it is only keeping it at bay."

*It may be too young to cure him without help. Try the drugs we brought - otherwise the Tok'ra will have something that can help him.*

"I've got something that might help you," Sam said, taking off her backpack and finding the injectors she had brought from the infirmary. She pressed them against his shoulder one at a time.

"Thank you, Captain Carter."

"Don't thank me yet. I don't know how long or how much it will help you," Sam said, thinking of Siler.

She held out her hand to help Teal'c stand, but he managed on his own, even if he was a little uncertain on his legs at first.

"Can you walk?" Sam asked, nervous.

"I can."

Sam nodded and handed him the assault shotgun, then dug out some ammunition for it from the backpack and handed it to him. "We need to hurry. The aliens are telepathic and may or may not have gotten warned by the one I killed."

She had barely spoken the words before the door opened and three of the alien creatures entered followed by four of the brainwashed human guards.

"Damn!" she exclaimed, raising her MP5 and starting to shoot.

Teal'c followed her example, firing at the human guards first, as they had weapons. All of them fell in short time, with only one of them having had time to shoot - and none of them had hit anyone.

Sam and Teal'c had both emptied their weapons before the first of the aliens had fallen. Sam had not wanted to use grenades - both because of the many humans stuck along the walls, and because there was little protection against the shockwave for themselves. Now she saw no choice. "Get behind the large pump or whatever it is!" She pulled the pins on two grenades and threw them behind the aliens, then ran to join Teal'c.

They only just made it, tumbling down behind the large piece of machinery as the grenades blew. Pieces of the organic webbing on the walls and alien goo splattered everywhere, but Sam|Jolinar and Teal'c were largely unharmed.

Sam took a quick look. It was hard to see through the dimness, but it looked as if one of the aliens was lying on the floor, another had fallen to its knees, and the third one was swaying dangerously.

She and Teal'c quickly reloaded and emptied their guns into the aliens, making sure all three were dead.

"All right, let's get out of here," Sam said, not wanting to look too closely at the people she knew would have been in the parts of the wall located close to the explosion. She could only hope the organic growths that held them in place had also protected them.

*Or maybe it is more merciful if the explosions killed them, compared to transforming into such beings as those.* She indicated the aliens that lay dead on the floor.

Sam did not answer, but she silently agreed with her symbiote. She searched the ground and plucked up two radios that looked relatively unharmed, handing one to Teal'c. "I don't know if they use these to receive orders, but if they do, it would be good to be able to hear it." She sighed. "Teal'c, can you carry one of the alien bodies? We should try to get it somewhere where it can be studied - and a countermeasure or cure found."

He inclined his head. "Of course. Where are we going?"

"Off world," Sam told him, unwilling to bring attention to the fact she was a host. He knew, of course, but perhaps he had forgotten, all things considered.

Teal'c sent her a long look, clearly remembering, but then just nodded and picked up the nearest body. Now was not the time.


	6. A Plan

They did not dare take the elevators, but instead hurried down the stairs as fast as they could. Teal'c had been uncertain on his legs at first, but he seemed stronger now. Or perhaps it was just his willpower.

Sam was feeling hot, tired, and sweaty, and she was just carrying her weapons and ammunition. Teal'c also had the alien body _and_ he was infected with the virus - or whatever it was.

She stopped just before opening the door. "I checked the surveillance before going to find you. There were many guards - I estimate more than 10, including two of the alien creatures - several in the corridors on levels 27 and 28, and more in the gateroom. We'll never get past them even if the alien-controlled humans are creepy slow. We need a plan."

"How many grenades do you have?" Teal'c asked, letting the body of the alien creature down on the floor.

"I've only got 2 left, but I have some C-4. I've considered that. We might be able to plant it somewhere that will take out a lot of hostiles, and then blow it, but I don't know where to put it or how to get them to go there."

*There is a round hallway just outside the control room. If we blow the explosives there, anyone in the adjacent corridors will be killed or severely incapacitated. We can lure them there with your radios.*

*Not a bad idea, as completely unvetted plans go, but we'd never make it there without being shot, and if we did, they'd see what we did immediately.*

*Then we need a diversion. Teal'c can enter on level 27, make some noise, throw some grenades and get them to congregate there. Meanwhile, you and I set the explosive charges and hide the radio somewhere nearby.*

*It's crazy, but I haven't got any better ideas. Okay, let's try!* She looked up at Teal'c. "Jolinar suggests... ehrrr, I mean, I think I have an idea."

"I am well aware that the parasite is still inside you, Captain Carter."

"You _are_? How? Why?" She stared at him.

"You regularly appear to 'zone out' as Colonel O'Neill would say. Also, you would not have remained unaffected by the alien's mind altering gas if you were not a host. I, too, was unaffected."

"Ah." Sam shook her head slowly. "Okay. Listen, we have an agreement, for now. Jolinar and I."

"I understand. It is not a problem. As you say, we have bigger problems."

Sam nodded. "Okay, then. This is the plan..." she began to explain.

* * *

As soon as she heard the noise from Teal'c's diversion, she snuck down the stairs to level 28. Holding her zat'nik'tel at the ready, she stepped out in the corridor. No one was there, but she could hear someone move around slowly, dragging their feet, some distance from where she was.

She moved as silently as possible to the nearest door and pressed down the handle. The door slid open almost noiselessly, which she was thankful for. She listened with concern to the weapon's fire from above, then pushed the thought aside. Teal'c could take care of himself.

*Relax, we are almost there.*

*I hear someone.*

*So do I. As long as they do not hear you, all is well.*

Sam made a mental snort and continued on. She froze after a few steps. *They're coming this way!*

She spotted the guard - human, fortunately - seconds later, when he walked past the corridor she was standing in. She had her zat'nik'tel ready and shot him once, before he had time to do more than turn to look at her. Fortunately, the brainwashed humans were much slower than normal.

She glanced briefly at the guard - airman Watson, she remembered, then stepped out into the corridor which was otherwise empty. She could hear the sound of weapon's fire from above, though.

*All right! Hurry now!* Jolinar urged.

*Yeah, yeah, I _will_ ,* Sam grumbled.

She got to the round hallway, and saw that the control room seemed empty. Quickly, she snuck in there and took a look around. It was indeed empty, but she could hear people shouting above, and the sound from weapon's fire was louder in here - hardly surprising, since an open staircase led to the briefing room above.

The gateroom was _not_ empty. She counted eight human guards and two of the alien creatures. So it was only those in the corridors who had gone to fight Teal'c. That was the best they could have hoped for in any case, of course, but they would never get through all those hostiles.

They would have to hope their plan worked.

She jogged the few steps back to the spot they had picked. She glanced at the camera which was located so that it overlooked the area, and would show them if their enemy took the bait. It was part of the reason they had chosen this location.

She placed a large charge - most of the C-4 she had brought, actually, then connected the detonator. She had just finished and was looking for a place to hide the radio, when the human guard she had stunned a short time ago started to wake up and she heard him moan in a low voice.

Sam quickly placed the radio so it was hidden in one of the niches along the wall.

Then she hurried to the guard she had shot, trailing detonating cord after her, making sure it ran along the wall, hopefully being less obvious that way.

The guard, Watson, had risen, but looked confused. "What... is going on?" he asked when he saw her. "Captain," he added.

She looked at him suspiciously. "What do you remember?"

He was quiet for a moment. "Nothing, really."

Sam made a quick decision. "Okay, come with me!" She gave him a push into the corridor leading to the stairs, then threw the end of the cord into a room just before the stairs, that she knew had a small control station with a monitoring system that could connect to the camera feeds for that level.

The guard followed, a bit slowly, but without complaint.

"Wait there!" Sam ordered.

He nodded and sat down on the lowest step of the stairs, while Sam hurried up to the floor above.

"Teal'c!" she called into the corridor.

"Coming!" he shouted, firing another round of shots at the attacking enemy, then followed her.

They ran down the stairs and into the room she had picked. They dragged the still confused guard with them in there and then shut the door and pulled a heavy rack in front of it, before Sam sat down at the computer station, activating it.

While it booted, she rummaged around in her backpack and found a detonator which she handed to Teal'c, who connected the cord to it while Sam typed on the computer for a few moments. Then the camera feed of the corridor where they had set the charges came up. She pulled out the other radio.

"Ready?" she asked.

"What?" Watson asked.

"Sit down!" Teal'c ordered him.

"Yes, sir," Watson answered, sitting down immediately.

"I am ready," Teal'c told Sam, placing the detonator on the floor and crouching beside it.

She smiled and activated the radio. The one at the other end was set to merely transmit the signal it got - _loudly_.

She spoke into the radio, hoping that what she said would work to lure their enemies to where they had placed the explosives, "Teal'c, I am in the control room. I am ready to upload the virus now. No one will be able to dial in or out when I'm finished. Come here as fast as you can - I need your assistance afterwards so we can set the auto destruct!"

She could see on the screen how one of the aliens walked towards the round hallway, with a handful of human guards following. Just as he passed the camera, the other alien from down in the gateroom showed up, with more human guards following. He stood still and seemed to receive or perhaps send a telepathic message.

Worried that the aliens had seen through their plan, she made the signal to Teal'c to detonate, which he did immediately.

The explosion was extremely loud, even where they were, and the walls shook and things fell out of the racks and shelves and down to the floor, with loud crashes. Some crumbled pieces of plaster fell from the ceiling, and then all was quiet.

"Wow!" Sam exclaimed.

"Indeed. We should move quickly. More guards and creatures may soon arrive," Teal'c said.

"Right."

They pushed the heavy rack aside, and opened the door. Outside it was quiet and the air was full of dust - from the concrete walls.

They found no one alive, and hurried through the corridor without looking too closely at the gruesome scene of the mayhem.

Watson followed them, looking pale. He was less confused now, and seemed to have thrown off the alien brainwashing completely.

"The computers in the control room are completely smashed - so is everything in here," Sam observed. She looked towards the staircase. "Including the stairs - no one is coming down _that_ way, at least."

"We will dial manually, then," Teal'c said.

"Yes. One more thing; we need to set the auto-destruct before we leave." She sighed. "Those people up there in the room where I found you, and two more rooms, they will transform into aliens soon. We can't risk them getting out on the surface of Earth - or to any other planet for that matter."

"Agreed."

Sam turned to Watson. "Listen, Watson, have you been infected? Stung by the aliens?"

"What?" He frowned. "What aliens?"

She sighed. "Just answer the question."

"No, I haven't been stung by anyone."

"Pull off your shirt."

He looked puzzled, but obeyed.

Sam checked his back and chest, then let out a sigh if relief. "Nothing. I didn't think you'd been stung. It makes more sense that those infected are the ones caught in the alien webbing, where it's warm and humid, but I had to be sure."

*It also means all those infected are likely in those rooms, and the human guards are merely drugged. That means destroying the base is likely to remove the contagion from this world,* Jolinar pointed out.

* * *

They had set the auto-destruct and had returned to the gateroom. They were in the process of doing a manual dial-out when another one of the alien creatures showed up, the biggest they had seen so far. It stood in the corridor outside the gateroom, and roared at them when it spotted them.

"You... will _fail_!" it growled.

Teal'c shot at it twice, but it barely reacted. Instead it made a kind of guttural laugh.

"Teal'c... surrender to... the inevitable. Become one... with the _winners_."

"Never!" Teal'c pressed down the trigger and fired repeatedly at the creature that was now releasing the purple smoke Sam had seen on the recordings before. Then his weapon clicked. "I am out of ammunition!"

*I believe that is similar to what drugged the others at first,* Jolinar warned Sam, who was running for her own weapon, which she had placed on the floor while helping to dial.

"No... you will _not_... harm... our overlords," Watson suddenly said, reacting to the purple mist. He snatched the weapon just as Sam was about to grab it.

"Kill them!" the alien ordered. "Kill them now!"

Watson raised his weapon, and Sam threw herself to the ground, rolling aside - and towards where her zat'nik'tel lay.

Teal'c let out a cry as he was hit by the bullets from Watson's weapon. Sam grabbed her zat'nik'tel and shot Watson, who collapsed immediately, the MP5 clattering to the ground.

"Teal'c!" Sam exclaimed. "Are you all right?"

"I will be."

The alien roared and suddenly jumped at Teal'c, who moved aside at the last moment and hit the being hard in the stomach. There was little reaction. The creature turned and stroke Teal'c over the head with its clawed hand, causing the large Jaffa to stumble. He did not fall, though, and swung around and smashed his assault shotgun into the head of the alien.

This was enough to make the alien creature stagger, and Teal'c pushed it further away. The being stumbled towards Watson, then righted itself.

Since it was now clear of Teal'c, Sam held down the trigger of her MP5 and emptied the clip into the alien, causing it to fall to its knees.

With some of its last energy it hit out with the singer, injecting the unconscious Watson.

Teal'c had reloaded his weapon and now shot the creature several times, until it fell to the ground, dead.

Sam let of a sigh of relief. "I was getting pretty worried there." She sent Teal'c a half-smile. "How are you?" She looked at him in concern.

"The bullets hit my left shoulder, but I do not believe any remained in the wounds."

Sam looked at his shoulder. "Maybe not, but you're bleeding badly."

*Time,* Jolinar reminded her.

"Oh, god! We'll have to look at it later! We only set the timer on the auto-destruct for 15 minutes, and most of that has passed!" She suddenly realized Watson had been stung. *He's infected now.*

*Yes, most probably.*

*We should bring him anyway. The Tok'ra biochemists may learn more about the aliens this way,* Jolinar suggested.

*Yeah. I just hope that means curing him.*

They quickly turned the Stargate the last of the way to cause the seventh chevron to lock, then jumped aside as the wormhole kawooshed.

Sam looked towards where Watson was waking up, wondering if he had been cleared of the alien control again. She hesitantly approached him, and he looked at her, puzzled.

She sighed. "Do you remember what has happened?"

He shook his head. "No. Captain."

"Great." She held out her hand. "Come on, get up!"

He took her hand and rose, wincing.

"Anything wrong?" she asked.

"My shoulder hurts."

Sam sighed. It was where the alien had stung him. "Yes. We'll look at that later."

Teal'c had picked up the dead alien, despite his injury, and was walking towards them.

Just before they all stepped through the wormhole, Sam took a last look at the gateroom. If she ever returned to Earth, the SGC would no longer be here. Neither would her friends and coworkers. She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to take it all in.

The rumble from the first explosions of the auto-destruct tore her out of her reverie and she turned and stepped through the gate, following the others.

Towards a completely unknown future.


End file.
